Commander Unadecal Arado shifted in his seat. Sitting in the First Officer's chair was still kind of new to him. As was this ship, this crew. Had the first mission gone as planned, the Gibraltar would have arrived at the former Romulan planet Alpha Menea to find out who lived on this planet, and perhaps to help the Romulans there. Now, the Gibraltar arrived at Alpha Menea to aid the Romulans living there, because the Starfleet rogue officer, Slade, had paid these people a visit.
Arado -called Una by his friends- glanced at the viewscreen. The Gibraltar dropped out of warp, and gracefully maneuvred into orbit thanks to Mr. Clawtooth, the helm officer on duty. It wasn't long before Captain McMillan called the Bridge crew to the Transporterroom... and -after scanning for any obvious boobytraps- they beamed down to the surface.
What they found was indescribable. The damage done here was immense. Arado figured it was all because of Slade, but that was of course an assumption he couldn't verify. Yet. Perhaps if they'd just be able to talk to a few of these Romulans... Perhaps then they'd get a clearer message about what was going on here.
And they got to talk to a Romulan alright. Right in the open, a voice which seemed to come from out of nowhere spoke to them. "Starfleet. We have you surrounded. One wrong move and you will be fired upon."
As Captain McMillan negotiated with this Romulan -a man named Tobek, who apparently was part of a Rogue Romulan faction- Arado and the crew looked around. Ms. Kelly Horen, the Tactical Officer, used her cat-like athletics -something more than one crewmember on board were jealous at, Arado knew- to scout the area, and to see if they were indeed surrounded. Her report came back negative: the Romulan Commander was bluffing.
Using this information, and the fact that the Gibraltar had the medical facilities needed in order to help the wounded, Captain McMillan formed a compromise. He, Ms. Horen, Counselor Dale and Mr. Clawtooth, would remain on the planet surface to talk to Commander Tobek. Commander Arado would take Doctor Bourne, the wounded, and Security Officer Goldfield back to the Gibraltar. From there, perhaps he would learn more.
As the blue beam envellopped him, Arado glanced at the Captain, and wondered if this was such a good idea...
Captain McMillan watched as Commander Arado and his team were beamed back by the Gibraltar. Only four remained behind: himself, the counselor, the helmsman and the tactical officer. The smaller team would now meet with Commander Tobek... though it was still a long walk.
The damage they saw during this walk was incredible. To McMillan's eyes, anyway. Horen seemed to be used to this, for some strange reason. I will have to keep an eye on this one. the Captain thought to himself, as he lead his team up onto a less than sturdy looking bridge. They were almost there.
But then, disaster struck. Either by design flaw, or because of the damage -the latter seemed more likely- the bridge started to shake underneath them. "We have to climb down, now!" Horen suggested. But there wasn't time. It was every officer for himself. They jumped... down to the long and harsh landscape that lay beneath them.
Horen and Dale both had cat-like abilities which caused them to land rather softly on the ground below. But Clawtooth and McMillan were less lucky. This will require a visit to sickbay when we're back. the Captain thought with a grimace, as he came down. They were still able to walk, but he promised himself that he wouldn't do this often...
There was no sign of the Romulan Commander. None at all. What they did find though, was some sort of Teleporter. "Could Slade have used this to transport away from here?" McMillan inquired. Horen seemed pretty sure of this. But that would mean Slade could be anywhere...
As the Captain, Counselor and Helmsman discussed what to do, Horen activated a device, which produced some sort of hovercraft. Horen smiled to herself, boarded it, and asked the Captain permission to scout the area. When she got it, she raced off.
When she came back, all that she carried with her was a bag with some of the belongings of the Romulan Commander. "He must have stepped on a boobytrap." she reported, while throwing the bag in front of her Captain. "This was all I could find."
As the Captain laid eyes on the bag, he wondered, not for the first time, how many more people had to die because of Slade. How much longer would it take before the renegade woman was found? Forever, it would seem. Especially with them not knowing where she was, now...
It was Horen though, who found a solution. "We can track this transporter." she said, matter-of-factly. "Let it send us a signal when it's being used again. Perhaps Slade will come back, and she'll use this again to teleport somewhere else. When she does, we got her."
Captain RoBobby McMillan smiled faintly. Finally, a chance to capture Slade. Would it be possible? Perhaps. But that was all he needed for now. A glimmer of hope. "Make it so, Ms. Horen." He ordered. He watched with great interest as Horen rummaged through the wires... and then seemed to put a device in? Well... she probably knew what she was doing. Besides, it was time to get back to the ship...
As the blue transporterbeams delivered the crewmembers back at USS Gibraltar, Commander Arado smiled, and released a sigh he hadn't realised he'd been holding. "Welcome back Captain. Sickbay reports the wounded are stable. They will be ready for transport soon enough." He paused, trying to see the Captain's reaction. "Any luck on the planet surface?"
"Tobek is dead." was the Captain's reaction. "Stepped on one of Slade's undiscovered boobytraps." He paused for a moment before continuing. "This woman must be stopped. Before she does more damage. Before more innocent people have to suffer."
Arado nodded sympathically. He had read the Captain's file... as well as Slade's file. He had been shocked to find out that they had known each other in the past. Known each other very well, even. But the Captain was a professional... or so he hoped. And if not, he certainly was.
"So have you been able to track her down?" Arado asked.
Shaking his head, McMillan answered. "Not yet. But we will." He smiled faintly at his crew. "No matter what the cost. No matter what... we will track her down. Sooner or later."
Arado nodded... but in his mind he remained doubtful. How could someone like Slade be caught by the Gibraltar, where so many other crews had failed?
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